International Association of Geodesy A Constituent Association of the International Union of Geodesy and GeophysicsWhat is Geodesy? Permanent GPS Station in southern Greenland
The Earth is not composed of solid rock, but due to the increase of temperature towards its centre it is built up from a mixture of viscous and solid materials. Thus the shape of the Earth is oblate, because the centrifugal force stemming from its rotational motion thrusts the masses out at the equa...
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| Format: | Text |
| Language: | English |
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| Online Access: | http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.308.1140 http://www.iag-aig.org/templates_img/iagbrochure.pdf |
| Summary: | The Earth is not composed of solid rock, but due to the increase of temperature towards its centre it is built up from a mixture of viscous and solid materials. Thus the shape of the Earth is oblate, because the centrifugal force stemming from its rotational motion thrusts the masses out at the equatorial bulge. What about the hills, mountain ranges, and deep sea trenches? These ‘topographic features ’ are quite small compared to the size of our planet. Of course they are measured and drawn on maps, but in Geodesy their contribution to the shape of the planet is quite small. These topographic features range from about |
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